Bye Bye, Dubs

The Playoffs have finally arrived, so it's time to dust off the keyboard and get back on the grind.  I've watched less NBA this season than I have in the last five or six years.  After being a fan for so long, you know what I'm saying?  Even a game between two scrubby teams can prove to be a thriller.  But in terms of attracting regular viewership, basketball is a sport that's very much dependent on its superstars.  So now that Lebron and Steph aren't the draws they used to be, thank goodness for Wembanyama, the first must-watch player the NBA has drafted since Ja Morant.  And concerning Ja, like who knows if he'll ever be the same again.

And speaking of Steph, this post is in fact about the Warriors, aka "the Dubs".  Those of you who have been following this sporadic blog for some time would know that I started saying that this team was too old like three years ago.  However, I'm not claiming guru-ship for that prediction, because it was premature.  The Warriors were my sentimental favorites back in 2022, but honestly, I was just as surprised as the next man that they actually proceeded to win a championship.

Even heading into this very season, there was hope for the Dubs.  With a healthy Steph Curry on your roster, you never really know.  But this is an organization that's too proud  for its own good.

For instance, giving up Jordan Poole for Chris Paul was downright foolish.  At the time, with Steph and co. being excited about CP3's arrival, even though I didn't agree with that acquisition I was also like 'okay, dudes are enthused, so it may work'.  But age is real, folks.  LBJ is an anomaly, not the norm.  And even with Lebron, as he's aged, it's like his defense sucks.

Another thing you have to give the Dubs credit for is not being afriad to lose.  There's so many superstars these days who won't even suit up unless they're on a stacked roster.

One of the most memorable parts of The Last Dance was when Jordan was saying that at least let the Bulls lose before breaking up the roster.  That was a team that Steve Kerr played on.   And with the Warriors, they really did play to the very end, if you will - to be beat by a team led by a player (Keegan Murray) who isn't better than Steph or Klay but does have the athletic advantage of youth.

But enough of the gushing.  Now it's time to identify the parties and factors that led to the Warriors', let's say embarrassing demise.

THE BRAINTRUST

Whenever a team disappoints like this, winning a championship less than two years ago but now failing to even make the playoffs, unless it's due to injury, the first place to look is at their braintrust.  This is one which has remained doggedly loyal to the combination of Splash Bros. + Draymond.

Being loyal isn't a sin.  But when you have a city and global fanbase to answer to, you have to try a bit harder to exercise your intellect.  And it ain't like the Dubs haven't done cutthroat sh*t before.  They just have never done it to their big 3 per se.

STEVE KERR

I've been arguing for years that Steve Kerr, as a coach, is overrated.  He was lucky enough to inherit a team - one who's ultimate success some would argue is more attributable to Mark Jackson - that was already on the verge of winning a championship.  And throughout all of these year he never, in my opinion, managed to consistently display a level of coaching intelligence that's superior to the next man.  When the Warriors' superstars are hurt or, as is the case now, aged, they lose games just like they would under any average coach.  Give Kerr a mediocre or challenged roster, and see how exceptional he actually is.

That said, please don't take this as if I'm bashing "the Brain".  He was actually one of my favorite Bulls back during Chicago's dynasty.

STEPH CURRY

Another idea I've floated, or let's say a conspiracy theory I concocted from watching the Warriors, is this being a team that sucks when it comes to player development.  Or put more simply, they aren't very supportive of young players.  It's generally understood and accepted that Draymond is a difficult teammate.  But with Steph sometimes, I don't think he's overly encouraging either.

For instance, remember last season when dudes used to show their disapproval of Poole's game while actually on the court?  From Jordan's perspective, that was some 'I learned it by watching you' type shit.  But Steph could never accept Poole as being his protégé.

Also, this is just something I personally noticed.  I feel that back during the Dubs' last championship run, Steph was getting jealous of the sudden and unexpected come-up of Gary Payton Jr.  I'm not going to sit here and knock somebody for being jealous, because that's an emotion which is sometimes difficult to control or even detect.  But then, when the Dubs let Payton walk that offseason, I was like 'man, WTF is this?'  And now you see that since then, Gary Jr. has never been quite the same.  I believe that if he would have stayed with the Warriors throughout all that time, he would have healed better than he eventually did, and the roster wouldn't have had to go through as many fluctuations and uncertainties.

DRAYMOND GREEN

Having Draymond Green on your team is for the most part advantageous.  He's a bully who the NBA powers-that-be more less accept and allow to do his thing.

The problem is that after awhile, the crabby schtick starts to gets old.  And you began to realize that he isn't able to control his fits for the benefit for the team, so his antics sometimes prove more detrimental than beneficial.  This is besides the fact that his own coach often appears to be afraid of him, which is an issue the organization should have nipped in the bud a long time ago.

Earlier this season, about a month or so ago, there was a report of Green once again being ejected, but, since the Warriors aren't as good as they used to be, Steph now becoming perturbed with his antics.  It felt sorta like 'dude, grow up already.  We need you on the court, not going around trying to prove your macho.'

Remember that it was also Draymond who basically chased KD out of town.  Durant was drafted before Green, Steph or Klay, but he appears to have aged more gracefully, in terms of being a professional athlete, than they have.  KD led the injury-ridden Suns to the sixth seed in the West, while the Dubs, with their younger (than KD) big 3, failed to even make the playoffs.  Imagine if the Warriors had been able to retain Kevin's services even up until now?

Last offseason, when Draymond's stock was hot and he probably could have gotten something like a max contract with another organization, I suggested that he would be a good fit with the Rockets.  Since then, he has publicly dissed that organization.  And now, under the presumption that there's a lot of people around the league who probably don't like him, it's hard to imagine Green playing for another squad, which he may soon be forced to.

THE DEPARTURE OF JORDAN POOLE

Back when I first started noticing the Warriors' age, the suggestion wasn't that they break up the team.  I too wanted would rather see the Splash Bros. + Draymond go out in a blaze of glory rather than giving up or going the superteam route.  What I was arguing is that they needed to focus more on their youth movement which, at the time, was actually viable.  And in hindsight, not doing so has been Kerr's biggest mistake and why I doubt he'll be around much longer than the middle of next season.

Andrew Wiggins may be the elder statesman for the next generation of Warriors, but Poole was their leader.  He was the one who was able to imitate the output of Steph or Klay when they were hurt.  He was literally 'the Jordan', i.e. the alpha, of their youth movement, being buttressed by Payton Jr., Kuminga, Moody, etc.

Given to keys to the car to Wiggins, imo, was never an option.  There's too many times when he's out there and proves to be a nonfactor.  Contrarily, as for Poole, whether positively or negatively, he always impacts games.  Also, I wouldn't be totally surprised if Wiggins just ends up and retires in the near future.

Then, with all the NBAers out there who would probably love to play with the Dubs, who do they go out and get in Poole's stead?  Chris Paul, one of the oldest players in the entire league.  So when Jordan went, so did their youth movement.  And as for his current struggles, I would argue that he's a victim of the Ewing effect, i.e. a player who has grown accustomed to being on the team that drafted him and is therefore flunking elsewhere.  Indeed, up until the moment he was traded, the Warriors having gave the impression that Poole was part of their future.

THE STUNTED DEVELOPMENT OF JONATHAN KUMINGA

Kuminga, as a rookie, was one of the best players in his draft class.  The world wouldn't know this though, because he was always riding the bench.

Steve Kerr stunted his development, for what reason I don't know, maybe to give more minutes to the older players.  That seniority shit is cool sometimes, but not when you're supposed to logically be thinking about the future.

The Dubs then proceeded to do some next suspect sh*t which I predicted, which was waiting until sh*t really got hot and then throwing Kuminga into the fire, basically putting the onus on him, even though they hadn't adequately prepared him throughout the years.  Remember a few months ago when Curry was talking that sh*t about 'if you're going to complain about playing time, then don't even show up'.  Yeah, way to encourage your younger teammates, Steph.  Now in hindsight, you see that some of them may have had legitimate concerns.

CONCLUSION

I've written the Dubs off in the past only to later eat my words.  So I'm not about to make that mistake again.  But I will say is that those hard questions concerning Klay and Draymond's future with the team have now apparently been answered.

So moving forward, what will most likely happen is the Warriors rebuilding around Steph (duh).  But knowing these geniuses, they'll probably proceed to do so by chasing an aged superteam rather than recognizing that their star player needs all the crutches he can get and gradually decreasing the load he's expected to carry.